35th of Winter 509AV
There is blood everywhere. On my clothes, staining my trembling hands, and melting the snow with its heat. It’s as if heavy rains drenched the lands in a sea of red. I guess it’s a good thing I won’t live long enough to remember such a scene…
She will find me and she will kill me.
Am I afraid? Yes. I can hear her footsteps. She is coming.
Dira have mercy on my soul..
--------------------------------
Frigid, cold winds howled through the air. The land was shrouded in snow; a blanket of white that hid the underlying dangers beneath. But of the many travelers and pilgrims that trekked through the harsh climate and pounded the obstacles in their path, there was one particular family of which this story is about. Four humans now stood before a vast landscape that beckoned them welcome. They would leave the city of Avanthal and set off on a journey toward Zeltiva, more for the father’s own purpose than of anyone else’s. There was the typical makeup of the family unit: a mother, a human female mother, Tarnia, a vantha male father, Yasil and two children, half bloods, a boy, Grez and a girl, Kasana. With them followed a wagon laden with supplies to last the coming weeks on their journey, and two horses to drag said wagon along.
Bickering was not uncommon among the four, with Tarnia often chiding her husband for flirting with passing travelers, or making frequent stops to relieve himself in a nearby brush. Despite the bone-chilling temperature, the family seemed unhindered, and made good ground along the road that wound through the Northern Reaches. Tents were laid out at dusk when Yasil had a fire blazing amidst the encroaching darkness. The children huddled against the warmth of Tarnia’s wool blanket, trembling at the drastic drop of the temperature despite the amount of layers they wore under their clothes.
“Father, when are we going to get to Zeltiva?” Came the snivel from the boy’s lips. His question was rewarded with a quick thwack to the head by a vexed Tarnia.
“Enough with that, Grez, you’ve asked it enough.”
“We’re not out of the woods yet, child.” The gruff tone of Yasil was comforting to the rest of the family as he lumbered back into camp, settling the pile of twigs and sticks he had in his arms next to the blazing inferno that offered it’s warmth.
Kasana settled herself comfortably, often taking to drawing figures in the snow with a stray twig, content with keeping to herself and staying out of the banter that was thrown from mouth to mouth. If anything at all, she was enjoying the sight-seeing, and escaping the confines of Avanthal where she knew she would be forced to marry, perhaps at the behest of her father, who rules the family with an iron fist. Here now she could let her mind be free of any worries, with her imagination running rampant in her mind. She was free in this sense. Free to dream and to wonder and to question.
Then a familiar voice tore through her relatively short happiness.
“Kasana, stop your silly drawing and sit by your mother.” Yasil tapped his shoe on the snow covered ground, the crunching sounds echoing almost hauntingly in the dark.
But Kasana obeyed, shifting closer to her mother and wrapping her arms about her waist to soak in all the warmth of her body she could. Yasil then turned to throw more logs into the campfire, absently watching as the flames licked the wood and caused sparks to fly in the air. The sound of the splintering eased his mind if only for the moment.
One by one, however, sleep began to overtake the family. They dozed off in a strides, with the children succumbing first then Tarnia and finally Yasil. The calming sounds of the wilderness brought no fear to them, for now they were in the world of dreams, where anything could occur yet they would never be harmed. But the humans would have never known there was a predator stalking the forest floor with an ominous intent.
The soft yet familiar crunching sounds of snow being tread upon roused Yasil to awake. He stood, with his arm on his blade, eyes alert and trained on the shadows that enclosed them. There was a flicker of doubt that racked his mind, for he was torn between awaking his family and frightening them, or simply fighting off this intruder on his own. His decision became apparent when he slowly forced himself to a stand, gripping the weapon tightly in both hands, a strong yet clear voice called into the shadows, “Who goes there, and what do you want?”
Tarnia and the children abruptly awoke then, but when the woman attempted to ask what her husband was doing, he silenced her with a fierce, “Shush!” The children huddled closer as the sound of grinding snow approached.
A flash of alabaster skin, raven locks cascading over naked skin, and the form of a young, trembling woman stumbled into their camp. Tarnia gasped in surprise as Yasil hissed a curse under his breath and immediately cast aside the blade to clothe the woman in a heated blanket. Her lips were chapped and her body was riddled with bruises and minor cuts, but still there was no expression on her face, merely glassy eyes fixed on the younger Kasana as the spouses bickered in an argument over her presence.
“We cannot keep her here, Yasil, she could be dangerous!”
“A naked woman, Tarnia, dangerous? Have you gone mad?”
“You’re being clouded by that lust-filled brain of yours, as you always are!”
“Woman, you best silence yourself before I do it for you.”
The kelvic smiled almost absently at the thirteen year old girl, and for once something lit up in her heart, as if she had found a long lost friend. “I think she should stay…” She murmured quietly, fingers reaching out slowly as if to touch the wild woman. But her fingers did not meet skin, the stranger moved away as quickly and as agile as any feline in the wild, her pale green eyes flashing in surprise. For the moment, Tarnia and Yasil had stopped their bickering to look over at the woman, until the mother sighed in defeat and sauntered over to the raven-haired girl.
“Here let me put some more blankets on you. Filthy, filthy. How could you even survive in the cold all clothes less and the like, child.” She mused, as she beckoned the woman over. The kelvic, surprisingly complied, another small smile dancing on her lips as she finally spoke. “I am strong, that’s why…”
Tarnia looked up at her and laughed. “Oh well look at that, it seems we have ourselves a kelvic. How did I not notice those pretty green eyes, and those teeth!”
Yasil grunted from his corner of the camp. “Maybe we can keep her as a pet to hunt with.”
A flicker of hostility was met with his words, but the kelvic simply stood still, silent, contemplating.
“Oh, hush, Yasil, she has feelings too, don’t you know. What’s your name, sweety?”
“Mao.”
Tarnia grinned in delight, as if a delicious meal had been placed right before her for the taking. “Well isn’t that a sweet name. Well, welcome, Mao. This is Yasil, my husband, don’t mind him. These are the children, Grez is ten, Kasana is thirteen. Say hello, now.”
Sheepishly the children complied, but Kasana held a deep curiosity in her tone that Mao caught from the very beginning. The kelvic moved over to her in one swift motion, until she stood a hair’s length away. “You are very pretty, Kasana.” The girl blushed immediately at the compliment, but before she could respond, Tarnia had clapped her hands together in earnest.
“Alright we’ll settle this all in the morning, it’s time for bed. Mao you’ll sleep here, I’ll tend to your little bruises come dawn, alright?” A sigh. “I suppose there really can’t be much harm taking you in, the more hands to help, the better.”
Gradually the silence consumed them, until once again the encampment was overtaken by sleep.
There is blood everywhere. On my clothes, staining my trembling hands, and melting the snow with its heat. It’s as if heavy rains drenched the lands in a sea of red. I guess it’s a good thing I won’t live long enough to remember such a scene…
She will find me and she will kill me.
Am I afraid? Yes. I can hear her footsteps. She is coming.
Dira have mercy on my soul..
--------------------------------
Frigid, cold winds howled through the air. The land was shrouded in snow; a blanket of white that hid the underlying dangers beneath. But of the many travelers and pilgrims that trekked through the harsh climate and pounded the obstacles in their path, there was one particular family of which this story is about. Four humans now stood before a vast landscape that beckoned them welcome. They would leave the city of Avanthal and set off on a journey toward Zeltiva, more for the father’s own purpose than of anyone else’s. There was the typical makeup of the family unit: a mother, a human female mother, Tarnia, a vantha male father, Yasil and two children, half bloods, a boy, Grez and a girl, Kasana. With them followed a wagon laden with supplies to last the coming weeks on their journey, and two horses to drag said wagon along.
Bickering was not uncommon among the four, with Tarnia often chiding her husband for flirting with passing travelers, or making frequent stops to relieve himself in a nearby brush. Despite the bone-chilling temperature, the family seemed unhindered, and made good ground along the road that wound through the Northern Reaches. Tents were laid out at dusk when Yasil had a fire blazing amidst the encroaching darkness. The children huddled against the warmth of Tarnia’s wool blanket, trembling at the drastic drop of the temperature despite the amount of layers they wore under their clothes.
“Father, when are we going to get to Zeltiva?” Came the snivel from the boy’s lips. His question was rewarded with a quick thwack to the head by a vexed Tarnia.
“Enough with that, Grez, you’ve asked it enough.”
“We’re not out of the woods yet, child.” The gruff tone of Yasil was comforting to the rest of the family as he lumbered back into camp, settling the pile of twigs and sticks he had in his arms next to the blazing inferno that offered it’s warmth.
Kasana settled herself comfortably, often taking to drawing figures in the snow with a stray twig, content with keeping to herself and staying out of the banter that was thrown from mouth to mouth. If anything at all, she was enjoying the sight-seeing, and escaping the confines of Avanthal where she knew she would be forced to marry, perhaps at the behest of her father, who rules the family with an iron fist. Here now she could let her mind be free of any worries, with her imagination running rampant in her mind. She was free in this sense. Free to dream and to wonder and to question.
Then a familiar voice tore through her relatively short happiness.
“Kasana, stop your silly drawing and sit by your mother.” Yasil tapped his shoe on the snow covered ground, the crunching sounds echoing almost hauntingly in the dark.
But Kasana obeyed, shifting closer to her mother and wrapping her arms about her waist to soak in all the warmth of her body she could. Yasil then turned to throw more logs into the campfire, absently watching as the flames licked the wood and caused sparks to fly in the air. The sound of the splintering eased his mind if only for the moment.
One by one, however, sleep began to overtake the family. They dozed off in a strides, with the children succumbing first then Tarnia and finally Yasil. The calming sounds of the wilderness brought no fear to them, for now they were in the world of dreams, where anything could occur yet they would never be harmed. But the humans would have never known there was a predator stalking the forest floor with an ominous intent.
The soft yet familiar crunching sounds of snow being tread upon roused Yasil to awake. He stood, with his arm on his blade, eyes alert and trained on the shadows that enclosed them. There was a flicker of doubt that racked his mind, for he was torn between awaking his family and frightening them, or simply fighting off this intruder on his own. His decision became apparent when he slowly forced himself to a stand, gripping the weapon tightly in both hands, a strong yet clear voice called into the shadows, “Who goes there, and what do you want?”
Tarnia and the children abruptly awoke then, but when the woman attempted to ask what her husband was doing, he silenced her with a fierce, “Shush!” The children huddled closer as the sound of grinding snow approached.
A flash of alabaster skin, raven locks cascading over naked skin, and the form of a young, trembling woman stumbled into their camp. Tarnia gasped in surprise as Yasil hissed a curse under his breath and immediately cast aside the blade to clothe the woman in a heated blanket. Her lips were chapped and her body was riddled with bruises and minor cuts, but still there was no expression on her face, merely glassy eyes fixed on the younger Kasana as the spouses bickered in an argument over her presence.
“We cannot keep her here, Yasil, she could be dangerous!”
“A naked woman, Tarnia, dangerous? Have you gone mad?”
“You’re being clouded by that lust-filled brain of yours, as you always are!”
“Woman, you best silence yourself before I do it for you.”
The kelvic smiled almost absently at the thirteen year old girl, and for once something lit up in her heart, as if she had found a long lost friend. “I think she should stay…” She murmured quietly, fingers reaching out slowly as if to touch the wild woman. But her fingers did not meet skin, the stranger moved away as quickly and as agile as any feline in the wild, her pale green eyes flashing in surprise. For the moment, Tarnia and Yasil had stopped their bickering to look over at the woman, until the mother sighed in defeat and sauntered over to the raven-haired girl.
“Here let me put some more blankets on you. Filthy, filthy. How could you even survive in the cold all clothes less and the like, child.” She mused, as she beckoned the woman over. The kelvic, surprisingly complied, another small smile dancing on her lips as she finally spoke. “I am strong, that’s why…”
Tarnia looked up at her and laughed. “Oh well look at that, it seems we have ourselves a kelvic. How did I not notice those pretty green eyes, and those teeth!”
Yasil grunted from his corner of the camp. “Maybe we can keep her as a pet to hunt with.”
A flicker of hostility was met with his words, but the kelvic simply stood still, silent, contemplating.
“Oh, hush, Yasil, she has feelings too, don’t you know. What’s your name, sweety?”
“Mao.”
Tarnia grinned in delight, as if a delicious meal had been placed right before her for the taking. “Well isn’t that a sweet name. Well, welcome, Mao. This is Yasil, my husband, don’t mind him. These are the children, Grez is ten, Kasana is thirteen. Say hello, now.”
Sheepishly the children complied, but Kasana held a deep curiosity in her tone that Mao caught from the very beginning. The kelvic moved over to her in one swift motion, until she stood a hair’s length away. “You are very pretty, Kasana.” The girl blushed immediately at the compliment, but before she could respond, Tarnia had clapped her hands together in earnest.
“Alright we’ll settle this all in the morning, it’s time for bed. Mao you’ll sleep here, I’ll tend to your little bruises come dawn, alright?” A sigh. “I suppose there really can’t be much harm taking you in, the more hands to help, the better.”
Gradually the silence consumed them, until once again the encampment was overtaken by sleep.
